A opção (ou: As rosas da estrada)

Combining documentary and staged action, Candeias delves into the profoundly quotidian reality of a group of rural women who cut sugar cane and live modestly in ramshackle neighborhoods along the highway. For many, the only escape (or option, as the title implies) to potentially better their lives is through prostitution. Candeias, a former truck driver, offers a deeply felt vision of these communities based, on firsthand experiences.
Shot in stark black and white at a time when most Boca do Lixo production had turned to colour, The Option unravels powerfully in a few nearly wordless movements. A culmination of Candeias’ preoccupation with marginality and his craft as a filmmaker (in addition to directing, he also shot, edited, wrote, and acted in the film), The Option received an unexpected plaudit in the form of a Bronze Leopard from the Locarno Film Festival.